Red Sox Journal: Drew sidelined with oblique tightness

BALTIMORE — Just a week into his return to the major leagues, Stephen Drew was out Monday with tightness in his right oblique that he first felt in his last at-bat on Sunday night at Detroit. Whether the...

BALTIMORE — Just a week into his return to the major leagues, Stephen Drew was out Monday with tightness in his right oblique that he first felt in his last at-bat on Sunday night at Detroit. Whether the injury will keep Drew out of the lineup for more than one day depends on how he feels Tuesday.

Jonathan Herrera was in the Red Sox lineup at shortstop on Monday.

Drew played in seven minor-league games in a 10-day span after he signed a one-year, $10-million contract with a Red Sox team that wasn’t getting adequate production from the left side of its infield. It was an extremely abbreviated spring training of sorts, though Drew had been keeping in shape in workouts both near his Georgia home and at a Florida facility run by agent Scott Boras.

“You don’t have the time to build a physical base as you would in spring training,” Boston manager John Farrell said. “We have to be mindful of when some of these things that might come up in spring training, when you can give him a couple of days just to get over it, that’s not the case here.”

Albeit with the benefit of hindsight, it seems fair to wonder if Drew could have benefited from more time in the minor leagues to build that physical base. Farrell hinted that the Red Sox didn’t have that choice based on the contract Drew agreed to sign.

“There are probably a number of things that go into negotiations,” the manager said. “I’m certainly not privvy to those.”

In four games since he joined the Red Sox, Drew is 1-for-14 with a pair of walks and five strikeouts.

Rehab stints

Clay Buchholz will pitch five innings in a rehab start at Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday, the next step in his return to the mound. Whether Buchholz will need any additional rehab starts won’t be determined until after that.

Buchholz pitched three simulated innings at Comerica Park on Friday. More than the health of his knee — the listed reason for his being on the 15-day disabled list — the Red Sox have wanted to see some consistency in the heretofore erratic mechanics that have contributed to the 7.02 ERA he’s compiled in 10 starts.

Felix Doubront will pitch for the PawSox on Tuesday and again on Sunday as he works his way back from a shoulder injury.

Star quality

Farrell has tended to brush off most questions about his potential All-Star selections. Not only does he still have a month before he has to make his selections, but new rules — including a players’ vote that determines many of the reserves — have taken much of the decision out of the hands of the American League and National League managers.

Asked about closer Koji Uehara on Monday, however, Farrell couldn’t help but acknowledge the obvious.

“Without looking at the names of guys that would be in that same conversation, in our eyes, he’s certainly an All-Star,” he said.

That Uehara has never gone to an All-Star Game is testament to just how under the radar he was when the Red Sox picked him up two offseasons ago. But it’s not like he came out of nowhere — he had a 2.36 ERA with 183 strikeouts and 17 walks in 145 innings pitched out of the bullpen even before he got to the Red Sox.

In taking over the closer role in Boston midway through last season, Uehara posted a 1.09 ERA with a strikeout-to-walk ratio north of 11. His numbers have been just as good this season, if not better — a 0.68 ERA with 36 strikeouts and four walks in 262/3 innings.

Just desserts

Baltimore third baseman Manny Machado was in the lineup for the Orioles against the Red Sox on Monday. He might not be in the lineup Tuesday.

A day after he appeared to throw his bat intentionally to culminate a contentious weekend against the Oakland Athletics, Machado offered an apology in an interview with the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network and acknowledged the likelihood he could be suspended.

The Orioles held a players-only meeting before the game Monday to address what had happened with Machado, who sparked an altercation with Josh Donaldson on Friday and then, after two purposes pitches sailed inside, seemed to try to throw his bat either at the pitcher’s mound or toward third base. Baltimore manager Buck Showalter said he didn’t have his “head in the sand” and thus expected Machado to face discipline, perhaps as early as Tuesday.

“I want to apologize to all my teammates, my coaching staff, the entire Orioles organization and Oakland and to our fans for the way I acted and overreacted on that,” Machado told MASN.